8510 M-140It’s been a while since I’ve been to South Haven. Being winter and all, there just isn’t quite as much going on.
After saying that, I did get sent to South Haven twice last week for work. We were there Monday evening then got sent back Tuesday morning.
Tuesday, I met a co-worker from Grand Rapids so I was by myself after we got done with the assignment for the day.
It was probably around 3:00 when I was packing up and getting ready to head back to Kalamazoo. I was hungry though.
I typically stop at the Village Market Express on the corner of Aylworth and M-140 on my way out of town. There’s a Mancino’s there and they typically have some of that grab and go gas station food I’m so fond of.
I did something different this time though. There’s a little drive in not far from there that just came under new ownership and I haven’t stopped there in years.
50’s Drive-In in on M-140 just to the Aylworth Road barely tucked inside the city limits. The small drive-in has been there for decades. J and I ate there back in 2010 after a day at the beach. It was so long ago, when I brought it up to J over the weekend, she had no recollection of a drive in anywhere in South Haven. That iteration of the 50’s Drive-In closed in 2021. It was recently reopened by the same people behind Takokat in Paw Paw and Big Foot Burrito in Bangor.
The restaurant is still set up like a drive-in from the 1950’s. They have car hop spots but they don’t do car hops. That part has been brought in to the 2020’s with QR code ordering.
There are several more ways to place an order if you don’t want to use your phone.
There is a walk up window in the front of the actual building part of the drive in.
Or you could just go inside where there is an order counter cut in to the wall of the kitchen.
While this is a drive in and you used to eat in your car, there is actually a dining room inside the building here so you can sit down and enjoy a meal.
The menu isn’t very big. There are only seven “combo” options to choose from but they have the basic burger and dogs as well as the “Bigfoot Burrito,” chicken tenders, a sloppy joe and a kids meal.
There is one other thing on the menu and that’s what really got me interested in making the stop on my way home.
I ordered the Chicago Beef Combo. As anyone who reads this blog knows, I’m super picky about my Italian beef sandwiches. This one is house made beef topping with cheese (no, thanks) and hot giardiniera on a 6″ bolillo roll. The combo’s come with house made chips but I upgraded to fries. The cost was right around $15.
So. Let’s dig in here.
The beef was really good. It was really tender and had the strong oregano flavor that makes Italian beef so distinguishable. There was a large spoonful of hot giardiniera on top of the beef which gave the sandwich that kick. The bolillo roll was a really interesting bread choice and one that worked way better than I though it would. The Mexican bread is very similar to French bread. It has that crusty outside and the soft, flaky inside. Perfect for this kind of sandwich. The bread was opened up more like a pita bread and the meat and veggies were stuffed inside. That did help quite a bit with eating it so it wasn’t quite of a mess as Italian beef’s usually are.
I’m sure the house made chips are good but I’m glad I upgraded to the fries. They are also fresh cut, thin and crispy fries with a pretty heavy dose of seasoning on them. I ate these as soon as I got back in the car and was really disappointed which I reached in to the box and there were no more left.
50’s Drive-In isn’t so much a drive in experience as it is just a good food experience. Yes, they’re in an old drive in but there isn’t the car hop experience. What you’re really going to want to stop at this spot for is the food. Most things are home made and it’s just really good food.